Origins: Project Shadow
by PackageHD
Summary: This is my take on the dark hedgehogs troubled past! Join Shadow in his story that includes him learning to use his power on the ARK, trying to figure out who to believe when his past is forgotten, running into a phony blue hedgehog, and is forced to make some difficult decisions when his quest for revenge is questioned by his partner in crime, Rouge the bat! contains Shadouge.
1. Chapter 1

_Hey everyone, quick disclaimer, I don't own Shadow or any of the characters in the story, and this is MY personal take on Shadow's Origins, throughout the tv series Sonic X and all the games in the past, Shadow has had a very complicated story behind him. Personally, it's what I love about the character. So while reading, keep in mind this won't be his REAL origin. One last thing, this story will be mostly from Shadow's POV, later in the story I may use characters like Rouge or Eggman to introduce thoughts that Shadow hasn't yet learned of himself. Hope you all enjoy!_

Chapter 1 - Maria and the ARK.

I woke up at the sound of her giggle. My eyes slowly but surely opened, and I glanced over and saw my favorite person in the world, Maria, playing with her dolls. I sat up out of bed and examined her, she seemed happier than usual.

"Hey kiddo." I said, smirking at her and standing up. I must've startled her, because she jumped at the sound of my voice.

"Hey Shadow! Good morning!" She said cheerfully.

I couldn't help but smile, she was so sweet, so innocent. She ran over and gave me a big hug, I actually had to pull away, she was beginning to hurt him she was squeezing so tight.

"Let's go get some breakfast, kid." I held my hand out for her to grab, and without hesitation, she took it. I took off, skating with her behind me, leading her to the kitchen where we ran into none other than Professor Gerald Robotnik. This man and this place was such a mystery to me, I didn't even remember being brought into the world, but I know he helped create me, and I know my mission was to protect his granddaughter, Maria.

"Well look who it is, my two favorite sleepy heads!" He laughed at the two as they sat down at the table. "What can I get you two to eat?" He asked.

"Hmmm, how about some bacon and eggs!" Maria said cheerfully. "What about you Shadow?"

I let out a tiny smirk. "Pancakes."

"Alrighty, a stack of pancakes and some bacon and eggs coming right up, after we eat, I need to speak with you for a moment if you don't mind Shadow."

"Of course professor, no problem." I replied, looking back at Maria. "So, what do you wanna do today Maria?"

"How about… hmmm… hide and seek!"

I chuckled "Awe, but you're so good at it!" I'd never admit it to her, but I let her win, it brought her so much joy, and nothing made me happier than seeing her smile light up.

"Awe come on Shadow, please?" Her big blue eyes always convinced me, what can I say, she was my happiness.

"Of course we can Maria, after me and the professor talk we will play whatever you like."

She grinned from ear to ear, right then and there, I was the happiest hedgehog in existence. Nothing could ruin this moment… nothing! ...so he thought!

After they finished eating, I waved to Maria before heading to the professor's lab. When I entered, there was a video of a man, wearing a suit, giving orders to the professor. He must've heard me enter, because he quickly turned the monitor off.

"Professor, what was that about?"

"Oh nothing Shadow, that was the president on earth! He just wanted an update on some things, but I'm glad you're here, I have something to give you." He waved me over to him.

I walked over to this glass container that was sat next to him, inside lied these gold rings.

"You're giving me jewelry, professor?" I chuckled and looked up at him.

"BAHAHA, oh no Shadow, these rings are called inhibitor rings. They help you not burn all your chaos energy, you won't get tired as fast." He said as he slid them on my gloves.

I sat there examining the rings, my entire body felt different, I felt stronger, faster, overall I felt _unstoppable_.

"Professor, you've outdone yourself this time, first the skate shoes, and now this?" I couldn't help but smirk.

"Well that's not all, I think it's time we put your powers to the test." He held out a red emerald.

"Shadow, you're infused with chaos energy, like the kind in this emerald here. Now, there are seven total, we have one here and the other six are lost either on earth or in space. You are very special Shadow, I created you to protect Maria, but come a time where we might need you to help defend us, we should test your ability to know you're ready." The professor pointed me into a room, I entered and the door locked behind me. The intercom came on in the room.

"Okay Shadow, you have the ability to cause Chaos Control, all you need is one emerald, hell, maybe once you master it you can use it with no emeralds, but that's besides the point. Hold up the emerald and say chaos control, as you do it, make sure you think about where you want to go, for this instance, think about getting to the other side of this door."

I nodded and did as he said, raising the emerald "Chaos Control!" a bright light filled the room, and before I knew it I was standing next to the professor. He was amazed, and I have to admit so was I.

"My god, we've done it, teleportation, this is remarkable! How do you feel, Shadow?"

I thought for a moment, rubbing my chin. "Well, when I used it, I felt this, I don't know, this rush of energy." I felt like I would never have to rest again in that moment, it was amazing.

"Anything else you'd like me to try professor?"

"No Shadow that was the big one, but for future reference, I should tell you, if you have one emerald you can use them to sense and find the others, once you get used to your abilities, you'll be able to sense the chaos power without having a emerald."

I shook his hand, he was about to turn around but I held him there for a moment.

"Professor, one more thing… Maria asked me what it was like on the planet down there, Earth? I've never been, but I wanted to ask you if you knew."

"Grab a seat Shadow." The doctor pulled up a chair and sat down.

"Earth is a complicated place Shadow, it's full of people, both good and bad. People fight wars over land, over religion, over just about anything they can start a fight over, really. Not all people like that, Shadow, I truly did create you for Maria's protection, but if the day ever comes when I need to send you down there for anything, you must be ready. Humans can be hard to trust, Shadow." The professor patted me on the shoulder and let out a deep sigh. "You have the power Shadow, to really make a difference, for better or worse. For now, we will stay out of Earth's way and focus on Maria."

"Understood professor." I nodded and walked off to find Maria. After walking down the hall, I sat in thought, then pulled out the Chaos Emerald. "Chaos Control!" I thought about Maria as I said it, and wouldn't you know it, I appeared behind her. She was looking out the huge window, down at the huge planet. She saw my reflection appear behind her and I startled her.

"Sorry Maria, just testing out a new ability." I held my hand out as I smirked. She took it and pulled me to the window next to her. I crossed my arms looking down at the planet. Maria had always wanted to go down there, but She couldn't she was sick… I felt a sadness come over me, she always wanted to go down there, but I never truly knew if she'd get the chance.

"Shadow, you look lost, what's on your mind silly?" her smile illuminated me.

"Just admiring the planet, and how I want to take you there one day." I smirked at her and continued looking out the window.

"Let's get grandpa and get some lunch!" She tugged for me to come along, but I shook free of her grip.

"Go ahead, I'll be there in a minute, I just need to think for a moment." I smiled at her and nodded as she took off.

I sat there looking out at the Earth, no knowing if I should actually admire it or despise it. I turned and began to walk away when something felt… off. I turned my glance back out the window to see a huge ship approaching. The letters GUN, on the side, my ears perked up as I've heard the professor talk about them before, I dashed off to find Maria and the professor. As I entered the kitchen, I found Maria eating a sandwich.

"Maria, where's the professor?" I muttered out quickly. Before she could even open her mouth the ARK began to shake, the intercom came on "Intruder alert, GUN has boarded our ship. Code 4 evacuation."

Code 4… I immediately grabbed Maria and skated off to the escape pods, the sound of gunfire and bullets hitting metal riddled the air. We arrived at the pods, and I grabbed her.

"C'mon Maria, we're going to see Earth!"

Before I could do anything she pushed me into the pod and closed it.

"Maria, what are you- why?" I screamed, I began beating the pod, but it did no good.

Her big blue eyes met me. "Shadow, promise me you'll help humans, promise me you'll do good." She said, a tear began to roll off her face. A man entered the room, a shot rang out and I began to fall into space. The last thing I heard from Maria…

"I'll miss you, Shadow the Hedgehog."


	2. Chapter 2 - Eggman

Chapter 2 : Eggman

50 years… for 50 long, lonely years Shadow was trapped in his chamber. He was asleep so long, he remembered only parts of his past. Well, at least that's what Shadow thought… It turns out Eggman came across the capsule when running away from Sonic one day. Not only did he find the dark hedgehog inside, but he also saw writing inside the pod. It read "Project Shadow: TOP SECRET." Eggman, being Eggman, took the capsule back to his base and began doing research.

*EGGMANS POV*

"This blasted computer!" he yelled smacking the monitor. The computer was frozen, then next thing he knows it's working again. He rubbed his mustache in thought. "Can't believe that actually worked. HAHAHAHA, alright let's get into these files. Project Shadow : Password Protected?" he laid back in his chair.

"Bokkun, come here right away."

The little messenger robot waddled in, glancing up at the rather big man.

"Yes Doctor Eggman?"

"My grandfather worked on Project Shadow, and it appears password protected. Run a search in your database for his daughter's name!"

"It appears he name was Maria, sir."

Eggman sits up and begins typing on his computer, A.

"Access Granted."

Pages and pages of information on Shadow appeared.

Eggman's eyes widened "A SECRET SUPERWEAPON? BAHAHAHA, OH BOKKUN, THANK YOU!" the doctor had a vicious grin on his face. He read about what happened to Shadow, and how he was created to protect Maria.

"Hm, maybe I should tweak his memory while I have the chance." the doctor began to work on Shadow… meanwhile…

*ROUGES POV*

"Dang it, just my luck." the white bat whispered to herself. She was on a top secret mission for GUN when her transmitter lit up. "The president needs to see me? Jeez what did I do this time?" she shrugged to herself and abandoned her current mission, she knew if the president himself was asking for her, something had to be wrong.

About an hour later, she arrived at the white house. She was greeted by the secret service and Topaz.

"Good to see ya Topaz, how serious is the situation?"

Topaz shook her head, Rouge knew something was wrong.

They escorted her into the oval office, where she laid eyes on the president, he was sat down in his chair glaring out the window.

"Well, what's the big problem?" Rouge asked, placing her hand on her hip.

"Rouge, we've had a breach of security. Normally the pentagon handles things like this, but it was a locked file, we have no idea what was on it. What we do know is where it came from. We traced the location to a possible Eggman base."

Rouge sighed " _Jeez egghead never knows when to give it a rest"_ she thought to herself. "Well, what do you need me to do?" she studied him, the most powerful man in the country was actually nervous.

'I need you to be my eyes and ears inside. We don't know what Project Shadow actually is, but we figure since Eggman has cracked it, it's gotta be some kind of weapon." he locked eyes with her "Rouge, this will likely be a long term assignment, you're the best agent for this mission. It will be dangerous, but I assure you, you will be very well reimbursed for your work."

She smirked "Don't sweat it sir, I can handle egghead." she said with a nod and left to get ready for her assignment.

*SHADOWS POV*

 _Damn, why am I so cold? Why is it so dark in here. Where am I-_. My thoughts were interrupted by the chamber opening.

I sat up and found a tall man, with a funky looking mustache. He had a sinister grin, was he friend, or foe?

"Well well well, sleeping beauty is awake." he said to me, then he let out a loud chuckle.

"Watch your tone, old man" I hissed at him. I must've caught him off guard, he looked taken back from my words.

"Listen Shadow, I've awaken you from a 50 year slumber, if anything, YOU'RE THE OLD ONE. BAHAHAHA."

 _Shadow?How does he know my name?_

"How do you know me, who are you?" I stood up next to him and examined the strange man, he looked awfully familiar.

"Well Shadow, you were created by a man named Gerald Robotnik, and he was my grandfather, in a way, we're like family!" He said with a sinister smile. Truly, he did look a lot like the professor, just younger.

"My name is Eggman, Doctor Eggman, but you can call me whatever you want Shadow, because you and I are going to do great things." He said to me, that same sinister smirk. I believed him.

"Whatever you need doctor, what can I do to prove my worth?" I followed him into what appeared to be a control room.

"I read a lot about you Shadow, I know what you can do, you don't have to prove your worth, I just want to help you get what you want, _revenge_!" He pointed at the screen, it was the ARK, and the cannon… yes, it was coming back to me.

 _Shadow_

"Maria?" I unknowingly blurted out. I saw the look the doctor gave me.

"Sorry doctor."

"Shadow." He sat down and placed his hand on my shoulder. "GUN killed Maria, that's why we're working together, to get revenge."

"Tha- thank you doctor." I nodded my head, feeling the anger build up inside. All humans were the same, and they would pay for what they did to Maria.

"Well well well, if it isn't my favorite doctor." A voice came from behind Eggman.

Me and the doctor both turned and laid our eyes on a white bat. She wore a black catsuit with a pink heart on her chest, long white gloves and white knee high boots.

"ROUGE?! Who let you in here?" Eggman exclaimed.

"Now now eggy, that's no way to talk to a lady. A little birdy told me you were making some moves, and I can help, I can get you a chaos emerald." she said with a flirtatious tone.

"Oh, and who is this handsome hedgehog?"

I had my back turned to her, but her words forced me to lock eyes with her.

"My name is Shadow." I said coldly, my words sent chills down her spine. She backed away.

"Well Rouge, if you get us a emerald, consider yourself part of the team." Eggman shook her hand. I saw how willing the doctor was to get that emerald, either she was very deceptive or she was the real deal, either way, I'm going to keep an eye on her.

"Well eggy, I know where we can get an emerald right now!" her face was hard to read, she talked in such a seductive tone. I couldn't read her.

"Well Rouge, do tell." Eggman snickered.

"It's in the jewelry museum downtown." She smirked.

"Doctor, let me retrieve the emerald, I'll show you just how powerful I can be." I stood up next to him, examining his expression.

"Great idea Shadow, Rouge here is an expert jewel thief, she will be examining your work."

I let out a hmph, then began walking out.

"Shadow you don't even know where to go." Rouge grabbed my shoulder, and I quickly jerked away.

"Hands off bat, I can handle myself." I shot razors with my eyes. Who did she think she was? She had no clue who she was fucking with.

With that, I made my way to the museum. For a place holding such valuable jewels, the security was light. I entered through a vent and crawled out the other side. It was dark, but there was enough light to see the glistering red emerald. I fixed my eyes on it, piece of cake. I broke the glass and grabbed the emerald, the alarm was raised. The security barriers began to close. Did these humans think a mere fence would hold me back?

"Pathetic." I muttered under my breath, then broke through the fences. As I walked outside, tons of robots appeared. _You call this a challenge?_

"CHAOS BLAST" I yelled holding up the emerald. The explosion was quick, as I looked around there were no more robots.

 _I should get back to the doctor._

"CHAOS CONTROL" I closed my eyes and when I opened them, I was in front of the doctor and the bat.

"Holy shit, what even are you?" the bat looked so lost as she gazed at me.

"Shadow, I knew you wouldn't disappoint." The doctor had a great big smile.

I gave nothing more than a slight nod. "They don't call me the ultimate life form for no reason you know." I handed the emerald over to the doctor and began walking away, but stopped when the doctor began talking.

"I know you're more than capable Shadow, but Rouge will work with you from time to time, next time we have a mission, she goes with you. I need to know you can work as a team." He chuckled then walked off.

I glared back at the bat, she hadn't taken her eyes off me since I flashed in front of them. I turned back to her "Is there a problem, bat girl?"

She was still so shocked she almost didn't answer.

"I- well, you look a lot like this other hedgehog, Sonic." She sounded so confused. "Are you two… related?"

I almost laughed. "Listen, bat girl, I'm immortal. There is _nobody_ like me." I glared at her one last time, then walked off, looking for a window to look out of.

Eventually, I found what I was looking for, a nice open window looking out over the ocean.

 _Maria would've loved this_. I missed her, but at the same time, I hated thinking about her, it brought back so much pain, but it kept me focused. _These humans… they will all suffer for what they did to her, and nobody can stop me_. Suddenly I felt a presence in the room. I glanced back to see the back girl flying over to me.

"What is it now, bat?" I was so frustrated, I thought I made it clear by walking away that I wanted to be alone. Clearly, I was wrong.

"Now now mr. grumpy pants, play nice." there it was again, that flirtatious tone. _Does she use that on everybody she talks to_?

I studied her body language as she landed next to me, she always seemed upbeat.

"I am being nice, now what is it you want. Bat?"

She frowned, placing her hand on her hip with a disappointed sigh.

"Well, firstly, I'd _love_ if you'd stop calling me bat. You don't see me calling you hedgehog ya know." She had a point.

"Fine, Rouge. Better?" I scoffed.

She gave me a slight smirk and laid her hand on my shoulder.

"Much better, handsome."

I immediately pulled away.

"For someone who just met me, you sure are touchy." I growled, she backed away. Message received.

"Listen Shadow, I was just trying to have some fun." She rolled her eyes as I glared back out the window. "I didn't come here to annoy you, I have something you might wanna look into."

Can't lie, her words caught my attention, and I would do anything just to get away from her for a little bit. I glanced back at her and met her emerald eyes.

"I'm listening."

"Good, Sonic is taking the heat from your robbery earlier, I think you should go pay him a visit, he's downtown right now, GUN sent tons of robots after him."

I studied her, she seemed to be telling the truth, and the doctor did say we'd have to work together, so might as well start now. Rather than leaving without her, I gave her the offer of a lifetime.

"Okay, I'll go meet this hedgehog you speak of, but you're coming with me. First, you're gonna take me to another chaos emerald, then I'll test this hedgehogs skills in battle."

She gave me a big smile "You want me to come with you?"

"Well, we're gonna work together anyway, and I want to see if you live up to this jewel thief gold standard Eggman gave you."

She nodded and flew off to get ready.

 _This oughta be interesting._


	3. Chapter 3 - Teamwork and Sonic

Chapter 3 - Teamwork & Sonic

Eventually the bat came back with her equipment. She gave a nod, then we walked out to roof.

I walked over to the ledge and looked out at the landscape.

"Ready?"

She walked up beside me and gave me a smirk. "Ready if you are."

Without hesitation, I grabbed her arm and skated off. I could tell she wasn't used to traveling at such high speeds, because she went from dragging behind me to climbing onto my back and squeezing me tight. In a matter of minutes we were there. I noticed how even after I stopped she didn't let go.

"Uh, Rouge?"

"Oh sorry, I was just a bit dizzy from going so fast." She got down and walked in front of me, I noticed a slight blush on her face.

She glanced back at me "Next time we're flying." she said as she continued towards the forest we stopped at.

"Actually, I have a better idea, now where is this emerald?" I caught up to her and walked alongside her. She must've noticed, because she glanced over and smiled at me, that or she thought something was funny.

"What?" I asked harshly.

She chuckled "Nothing Shad, now trust me, the emerald is here."

We continued along for a bit in silence, then we came across some sort of temple, at the top resided a red echidna.

"Now Shadow, let me do all the talking, this guy's pretty tough." She sounded as if she was teasing me, but I felt she was questioning my power. Regardless, I followed her up the staircase.

"Rouge, what do you want, and who's that with you?" The red echidna pointed towards me, already I didn't like his tone.

"I'm here just showing the new guy around, and why do you care Knucks? You jealous?" She said with a smirk, she was clearly having too much fun with this.

"JEALOUS?! WHY WOULD I BE JEALOUS OF A LOSER LIKE HIM!" he screamed in her face. She took a few steps back and glanced over at me.

"Watch your tone. You have no idea who you're talking to." I snarled at him, the anger was eating me up inside, all it would take was one wrong word out his mouth and I was gonna make him wish he didn't.

"Listen, shrimp, you can't handle someone like me so back off." He got into a fighting stance.

A smirk came across my face, yeah, I was angry, but I knew what was about to happen.

I didn't even reply, I sped behind him and kicked him in the back of the head, he hit the stairs and bounced like a ragdoll, but he hopped up rather quickly, and answered with a strong right hook. I let out a slight chuckle then hit him with a quick combo, then slammed him into the ground. He could be a formidable opponent, but my speed was unmatched. I stood on top of him, looking down as he gasped for air.

"Don't ever cross me again, next time I won't take it easy on you." I glared back at Rouge and shook my head, then began walking away. Of course, she flew up to me and walked beside me.

"Wow Shad, I gotta admit I'm impressed, he's one of the strongest people I know." She said with a playful punch to my arm, but I wasn't in a playful mood.

"I told you to bring me to a chaos emerald, not that pathetic excuse of an opponent. That was a clusterfuck Rouge. I trusted you to get me and emerald and-" I was stopped by her putting her finger on my lip.

"Now now Shad, I lived up to my end." She pulled out a blue chaos emerald and held it in front of me. "Now, what was that about trusting me?" she had a huge smile on her face, and I couldn't help but smirk back.

"So, you went off and grabbed this while I beat that guys ass?"

"Exactly."

"So you wanted to see us fight?"

She smirked again "Maybe a little." She chuckled and got closer to me.

"So, we're flying to sonic, right?" she said, reaching to pick me up.

I grabbed her arm and met her eyes. "I told you I had a better idea. CHAOS CONTROL!"

After the flash died down, I found she was holding tightly onto my chest.

She let go after a second, took a deep breath and said "It wouldn't kill ya to warn a girl ya know." she had a slight smirk on her face.

"I think you just wanted an excuse to hold me." I said walking away from her, we had teleported to a rooftop.

"So, this Sonic you speak of, what's he like?" I asked as I sat down on the edge of the roof.

She followed and sat beside me before speaking. "Well, he's fast, like you. He's tough too, but I wouldn't say he's stronger than you, I've never seen anyone beat Knuckles so easily, even Sonic couldn't." she glanced out over the city.

"Sounds like he won't stand a chance." I glanced over at her, then stood up and got ready to look for the hedgehog.

"Shadow, I get it, you're strong, but don't underestimate him, I've seen him pull off the impossible more than once, plus, between you and me, Eggman has a reputation for getting his ass kicked by Sonic." she also stood and followed behind me.

"I guess we will find out if he's as good as you make him out to be." I shrugged slightly, then heard the sound of metal smashing in the street. I turned and walk back past Rouge, back over to the ledge, and saw a blue hedgehog battling GUN robots.

I glanced back at her before speaking "I'm gonna go introduce myself, enjoy the show." I left her with a smile on her face, then chaos controlled down onto a streetlamp.

"Well well, if it isn't the hedgehog I've heard so much about." I said with a smirk.

He turned around and locked eyes with me. "YOU! You're the one causing so much trouble for me, what are you some kind of faker?" he shouted at me.

 _Faker? Okay, now I'm definitely kicking his ass._

I assure you Sonic, I'm too powerful to be a faker, soon you will realize that.

I spin dashed into the hedgehog, knocking him over.

He bounced up quickly and raced towards me, Rouge was right, he was quick, just not quicker than me.

I teleported behind him and landed a swift series of blows to his back, then spun him around and uppercutted him.

He looked up at me, blood rolled from his mouth "Who are you?"

I couldn't help but chuckle. "Look at you, Earth's best hope, squashed by me, and I didn't even break a sweat. The name's Shadow, but your earth will know me as the superior lifeform, especially when I remove your head from your shoulders and place it on a pike."

I was about to do as I said, but I heard sirens in the distance. I shook my head and pulled out the emerald. "You got saved by the bell Sonic, I'm sure we will meet again." I smirked and caused chaos control back to Rouge.

After the light had died down, the first thing I was greeted with was a horrified face.

"What, didn't enjoy the show, bat?" I waved her over, but she didn't budge.

"Shadow… were you really gonna kill him?" her voice cracked as she asked.

"Rouge, it sounds like you're actually worried about him." I studied her curiously, something was up with her, I knew all along, but she hid it well.

"No, I honestly thought you were acting tough this entire time, but you're serious." she walked closer to me. "I gotta say, it makes you that much more attractive, a man that backs up his talk." there it was, that tone again.

I quickly ended whatever it was before it could start, I grabbed her arm and chaos controlled back to the doctor.

Once we arrived, the doctor had an angry look on his face.

"Where the hell have you two been?" he scolded

I glanced at the funny looking man, shook my head and handed him the emerald.

"Our job, doctor. That's what we were doing." I said as I walked away towards the window.

I sat in peace for a few moments, for once I thought I had time to think, then the bat came over. Before she could even speak, I glared back and gave her a death stare.

"Will you always follow me around like this?" I growled.

"Now now Shady, that's no way to talk to a lady, let alone your partner." She flew over to me, regardless of my hostile tone.

"It's late. We should get some rest."

I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye. "I've been asleep for the last 50 years, I think it's safe to say my energy is fine."

She sighed. "Well at least let me show you our room."

I paused, this time glancing into her eyes " _our_ room?"

"Yeah, Eggman doesn't have many guests, so there's only one room."

 _Shit, not only do I have to work with this bat, but now I have to sleep in the same room as her?_

I let out a deep sigh "Lead the way."

We walked a short distance and then she pointed into a doorway. It was a small room, two beds, and a dresser with a mirror on it. One bed was black, the other was white.

"Well, at least they have our colors" I said as I sat on the black bed.

She giggled, then sat across from me on her bed "Yeah, and the dresser is filled with my clothes, just in case you get curious, don't go snooping." she had a sly tone, it felt like she was toying with me. Something wasn't right about all this, but it could wait until tomorrow, right? I wasn't tired, but if me sleeping would make her shut up, then I would do it.

I glanced over at her one last time "turn the light out when you go to bed."

I took off my skates and gloves, then got in bed and curled up.

She stared for a moment, then turned out the light.

"Goodnight, Shady."

"Goodnight."

It only took seconds for me to fall asleep, but I didn't sleep for long. I woke up, and the lights in the room were back on, I glanced over to see if Rouge was there. Nope. I put my skates and gloves on, then walked down the dark hallway. I could hear the doctor snoring loudly, then I noticed a light on the staircase, I walked up and saw the door to the computer room was cracked. I peered in, and noticed the bat looking at the screen and whispering into some sort of communication device on her wrist.

"Topaz, listen, Project Shadow isn't actually a weapon, it's a hedgehog. He's the real deal. I'll make a report to GUN soon, I'm trying to earn Eggman's trust at the moment. We will talk soon, agent Rouge out."

 _Agent Rouge? GUN report…_

She turned off the computer and put what looked like a hard drive into her bra.

Then she started walking towards the door. Since it was so dark, I blended in right behind the door. After she passed, I didn't know whether to kill her or to get the doctor or to interrogate her.

I heard her gasp as she entered the room and saw I was gone.

 _Shit, gotta think of something._

I walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge, Rouge walked in and sighed with relief.

"Wow Shadow, you don't look like the type to get a midnight snack."

I didn't even wanna talk to her, but I needed to play it cool.

"I kicked a lot of ass today, I worked up quite the appetite."

She giggled and sat on the counter top next to me, her body was exquisite. Her pajamas showed off her curves and… _damn it Shadow snap out of it_.

"Shady, I gotta talk to you about some stuff, but I don't know how you're gonna take it."

 _Cliffhanger, I know right? More coming soon. I promise!_


	4. Chapter 4 - A tough choice

Chapter 4 - A tough Choice

"Well? Spit it out Rouge, what is it?!" I said impatiently.

She took a deep breath then grabbed my arm.

"Promise me you won't get mad."

I hesitated. "It depends how bad it is."

"Listen, I'm gonna tell you regardless, because you need to know, but it would help if you'd trust me, okay?" her eyes looked so innocent, but I wanted to hear what she had to say, so I heard her out.

"Just tell me Rouge."

"Shadow, I looked on Eggman's computer… he had a lot of information on there, mostly about you."

"Yeah, what of it?"

"Shadow, follow me, please?"

She got off the counter and walked from the kitchen towards the roof. I followed slowly behind her.

When I got up there, she was sat on the edge of the roof, she patted for me to sit beside her.

Reluctantly, I sat beside her.

"Shad, what I'm about to tell you, it's gonna be hard to hear."

I nodded, waiting for her to continue.

"From what I read, I'm assuming the doctor played with your memories, and he's hiding the whole truth from you Shad. You deserve to know." I was cautious, I knew she was an agent, how did I know she wasn't toying with me?

"Go ahead."

"Well, GUN was responsible for what happened up there, but the doctor has altered your memory to make you feel like your purpose is pure revenge, in the files it told me you were created to protect a girl named Maria?" She stopped as she saw me shake at the sound of her name. She put her arm on my shoulder.

"Who was she?"

I sat in silence for a moment, deep down I didn't know how to react. In that moment I could've just snapped, I could've beat her for asking so many questions, but then part of me wondered if a burden would lift off me if I talked about her, shit, part of me just wanted to cry… but I couldn't show weakness in front of the bat. Right now, she was the enemy.

"She was a girl, and I failed to do my job. Simple as that."

 _ **Shadow**_ _!_

 _Maria?_

 _ **Remember what I told you Shadow, remember, you promised.**_

 _I know Maria. I will have revenge!_

I snapped out of my thoughts to find the bat studying me with those big emerald eyes.

"Shadow, she wanted you to help people not hurt them, think about it. She was just a little girl."

I couldn't take it anymore.

"JUST A LITTLE GIRL!? ALL SHE EVER WANTED WAS TO SEE THIS SHITHOLE OF A PLANET! Humans… they took her from me. I will have revenge for her. Don't you fucking dare try and talk me out of it."

I stood up to dash off, but she grabbed my arm. I broke free and grabbed her and pulled her into me.

"I KNOW WHO YOU ARE." I glared at her before I let go.

"You know who I am, what do you mean?" her tone had completely changed, she was nervous.

"You're a fucking _liar._ A agent using Eggman to get information on me? I almost trusted you, but deep down I always knew something was off with you Rouge."

His words stung, she was clearly holding back tears, but why?

"Shadow, I know you don't care, but I broke the fucking rules for you, I was supposed to leave after I got my information. I stayed because I thought you'd been through enough, what I read was horrible, look, you can call me whatever you want, but I hope you know not every human is evil, and I hope you know I'm coming from a good place." A tear finally broke through, he voice was breaking as she spoke.

"Rouge, I need to be alone right now." I glanced at her one last time and walked back downstairs. I sat on the couch, didn't even bother turning on the tv. I sad in the dark, in silence. After a few minutes passed, Rouge emerged from the room we had been staying in, her bag in her hand. She was leaving.

She didn't say a word to me, nor did I say a thing to her. She just stared at me, then left.

As much as I hated to admit it, I felt bad. Was she really trying to help me? I guess I'll never know now…

I didn't even bother going to bed, I laid down and slept on the couch. I found myself being awoken by the doctor.

"SHADOW! WAKE UP, THAT TWO TIMING BAT TOOK THE EMERALDS."

I sat up and stretched out, then decided to speak.

"Doctor, I'll take care of it, don't worry." I couldn't help but feel like there was something he wasn't telling me.

 _Shit, was Rouge right? Or was she actually in my head?_

I got up and walked out, deciding to go find the bat and the emeralds.

I looked all over the place, I was going to give up, then I figured out where she had to be.

I walked up to a building, music was coming from the inside and there was a line outside the door, security guards at the door.

 _Club Rouge_

"Time to see what this is all about." I walked up to the bouncer and was stopped.

"Hey buddy don't you see the line?" he pushed me back.

"I have business with the owner, I suggest you stay on my good side." I clenched my fist, part of my just wanted to lay him out, but I didn't want to alert Rouge, she couldn't know I was coming.

"Fine, get in. Cause any trouble and I'll throw you out myself." He moved and motioned me in.

As I entered, I saw tons of humans dancing, I saw some familiar faces too, Sonic and a pink hedgehog were off in the corner with Knuckles.

I glared up to the second floor, it appeared to be an office and an apartment.

I walked up the stairs and opened the office door, there was Rouge and her bag, over by the table, and someone I hadn't met yet. She wore a GUN uniform, so she must be an agent too.

She was mid sentence when I entered, and she dropped her glass of wine.

"Surprised to see me?" I glared, studying her and the other agent in the room.

"Topaz, give us a minute." she waved off her friend.

She hesitated, but walked out eventually.

"How'd you find me, Shad?" she pointed to a chair across from her for me to sit in. Instead, I stood at the window overlooking the club.

"Well, the name of the club for a start." I chuckled glancing at her in the reflection of the window.

"Yeah, guess I should've seen that one coming. She stood and walked over to the window beside me, glaring out at the crowd.

"Are you here to kill me?"

"I don't know, am I?" I turned from the window and studied her.

She also turned away from the window.

"Well, I think if you wanted me dead I would be." she gave a slight smile.

"Smart girl, why'd you take the emeralds?"

"I knew you'd come for them. I wanted to prove I'm trustworthy. So, yes, I stole the emeralds, buttttttttt."

I waited. "But what?"

She walked over to the table and opened her bag. There were 3 emeralds.

I was surprised, then confused.

"Why are you still helping me?" I walked over and sat in the chair, while she sat on the desk, crossing her legs.

"You deserve the truth."

"Look Rouge, I appreciate the concern, but I'm still confused." I could see her analyzing my face, my words.

"Go on." she said playfully.

"You told me you broke the rules for me, why? You've known me for 3 days, why?"

She sat for a moment, glaring out the window then back at me.

"Because I wanted to." She said handing over the emeralds.

I grabbed the bag and started walking away, but something inside me told me to stop.

 _ **Shadow, she's trying to help you, remember what you promised me.**_

 _*FLASHBACK*_

"Shadow?"

"Yes Maria?"

"If you ever get to go to Earth, promise me you will help people, and be friends with them. Promise me, please Shadow."

"I promise Maria."

 _*END FLASHBACK*_

 _Shit, Rouge was right… the doctor did something to me. Can I actually trust her though?_

I dropped the bag and turned around "Come on, let's go."

Her ears perked up "You- you want me to come with you?" she sat up, seemingly excited.

"Yeah, we have some things to talk about."

"Well I do have to work Shad."

I couldn't help but let out a chuckle "You broke the rules for me already, now come on, you have to explain some things to me."

She smiled, and hopped up off the table.

"Where will we go, I can't go back to Eggman."

"We won't, he was using me. You were right. Now come on, I have a place for us to talk."

The two walked off together, discussing what was next, and discussing what Rouge knew about Shadow. Eggman had no idea the enemy he had just made.

 _Hey guys, sorry if this chapter was a little shorter than the rest, been very busy with school! Just wanted to give a quick S/O to KingShadows for showing love on the story! More coming soon guys, stay tuned :)_


	5. Chapter 5 - Bonding and Visiting Eggman

Chapter 5 - Bonding and Visiting Eggman.

We arrived at an apartment complex. I was walking up the stairs and noticed Rouge wasn't beside me. I glanced back and saw her looking at her phone, she looked so distracted and off.

"Rouge, you good?" I stood waiting for her to look up, but she didn't. She didn't even say anything. I walked over to her and grabbed her arm, finally she looked up and met my eyes. Tears were welling in her eyes.

She just fell into me, and I didn't know how to react. I wanted to pull away, but she actually pulled away before I could even react.

She threw her phone off the balcony and glanced back at me.

"Can we just go inside now?" tears were still dripping off her cheek.

Deep down I wanted to ask what was wrong, I didn't know why, I didn't know her, why should I care? I blew it off, and nodded my head.

"Yeah, just one more floor, I think you'll like it." I waved for her to walk with me.

She hesitated, but she followed.

After some walking we arrived at the door. I pulled out the key to the room, but instead of swiping the key I handed it to her.

"You do the honors."

She reluctantly slid the card and then slid the door open.

She paused and I saw her jaw drop when she entered. I told her it was an apartment, but it was really a penthouse. Personally, I had never been into a penthouse, but when I decided I would be staying with Rouge while we figure some things out, I figured I'd book the most expensive thing they offered. With Eggman thinking I still worked for him, getting the money for it was too easy.

"Shadow, I gotta say I was not expecting this!" her face lit up a little, but I could tell she was down.

"Well, its nice, but there's only one room, so I'll sleep on the couch. I figured since you were having a rough time you deserved it. Go take a shower, then you can figure out what we will eat." I waved her off as I sat down on the couch.

 _Damn, this couch beats the hell out of that bed Eggman gave me, I bet that bed feels like laying on a cloud._

I was snapped out of my thoughts when she sat beside me and gave me a big hug.

"Thanks Shady, you know, maybe I was wrong about you, you _do_ know how to treat a lady." She released me and began walking towards the bedroom.

I sat semi-stunned. We had known each other for such a short time, yet, I feel like I've known her for so long. She reminded me of Maria in a way, just not as innocent. I felt like I related to her in the little time I knew her, I was… _comfortable._ Just the thought of that word sent chills down my spine. I stretched out on the couch and turned on the TV. There wasn't much on that caught my attention, I flipped and flipped through the channels until I came across an action movie.

 _Jackpot._

About 20 minutes passed, then Rouge walked out wearing a towel. I had to admit, there wasn't much that distracted me from kicking ass, but damn… her body was insane. I must've been staring, because she called me out on it.

"Shad, my eyes are up her." She giggled as she pulled up her towel, I blushed not even realizing I made it so obvious.

"Sorry." I quickly took my eyes off her and back onto the movie.

"Shady, there's a problem." she walked over and lifted my head, then sat and laid my head in her lap. I rolled over onto my back to look up at her.

"Well, what's wrong?"

"Well I didn't pack clothes, I guess I got caught up in the moment and forgot to grab my bags." She began rubbing my chest fur.

I had to admit, it was relaxing. I liked it, almost too much.

"Well, how about I give you one of my shirts and you can just wear that, then when your clothes you wore are clean you can wear them again and go grab clothes or go shopping." She was still rubbing my chest, and I felt my eyes getting heavy, before I knew it, I fell asleep right there on her. When I woke up, I felt her laying against me. I noticed my shirt was off, and she was wearing it. I was beyond surprised, I didn't even remember falling asleep, yet alone her laying on me. I tried to wiggle out, but she was cuddled up into me.

 _Damn, what did I get myself into._

I ended up falling back asleep while waiting for her to wake up. When I finally woke again, she was gone. I sat up and looked around to find a note on the table.

 _Shadow, I'm going out to lock up my club and get some clothes, I'll be back later. There's some left over pizza in the fridge if you get hungry. When I get back and get settled, we can talk about what we're gonna do against Eggman. Oh, and thanks for the shirt and keeping me warm last night ;) I owe you. - Rouge_

I walked over to the fridge and scanned the content inside.

 _Pizza, beer, water, yogurt._

I grabbed a beer and cracked it open.

 _Jesus, it's like she hypnotized me last night. I never felt so vulnerable around someone like that, not even Maria._ I thought to myself as I took a sip.

I walked over to the balcony and looked out over the city. Things weren't exactly as I imagined them to be, then again, I truly had no idea what to expect.

I walked back into the penthouse and heard the door opening. Rouge fly's in carrying at least 5 shopping bags.

"You've been busy." I chuckled, putting my shirt back on.

 _Damn, now I smell like Rouge._

"Yeah, I saw all that money you stole from Eggman, and I couldn't help but spend some of it." She said with a playful tone. She took them into the bedroom and came back out.

"You know, I think I like you better with your shirt _off_."

I blushed a little, then walked over and grabbed my beer.

"A little early for a drink isn't it Shady?" she sat on the couch and stretched out.

I nodded, then finished my drink. "I needed something to get me going."

She giggled and rolled onto her stomach. "Shady, can you rub my back."

"No."

She shot up "Well why not?"

"Why would I?" I said confusingly.

She gave a playful smirk "Don't you remember me rubbing your chest last night? It felt so good you fell asleep. You even purred in your sleep."

I was now cherry red, I couldn't believe I actually let that happen.

"If I rub your back, promise me you'll never bring that up again."

"Shady there's nothing wrong with what happened, it's completely normal. Now come rub my back." she demanded.

"I don't take orders from you, bat." I said walking over to her.

"I'm doing this because you did this to me, not because you want me to." I said climbing onto her back.

"Whatever floats your boat, get to rubbing." she said laying her head down.

I began rubbing her back, and she clearly enjoyed it. Letting out small moans here and there.

"So, about Eggman." I said rubbing her back.

She simply gave me a "Mhm."

"I think we should just take him down, if he's as weak as you said, I could take him easily, with or without you."

No answer this time.

I glance down at her, and she's asleep.

 _Hm, so I'm not the only one that falls for this trick._

I get off her and grab a blanket, covering her up and heading out the door.

 _Time to pay Egghead a visit._

I chaos controlled to his base, and walked in to find him working on a new device.

"Shadow, so nice of you to finally turn up." he greeted me with a wild grin.

"Doctor, why'd you tamper with my memory?"

He dropped his wrench and turned around.

"What're you talking about Shadow?"

"Cut the shit, you know what I'm capable of. Don't piss me off or I assure you it'll be the last thing you do." I felt the anger coursing through my veins, the fact he'd lie dead to my face proved Rouge was right, he was using me.

"Shadow, we both have a common goal, I may have tweaked your mind slightly, but that was because I didn't wanna convince you for help. I just wanted you to be there. I wanted to rule the world and you hate humans. Why not work together?" The doctor held his hand out as if he wanted me to shake it.

I did what I felt right, I slapped his hand away and landed a swift kick to his head. He tumbled and rolled over, I quickly hopped on him before he could get up. I started choking him, not letting him up.

"You have the audacity to use me for such a task? You call yourself a man? Using me for your dirty work, you're just a big pussy Eggman." I felt my anger peaking, the darkness I hid deep inside wanted out, and I think it's time I let it out.

Eggman hit a button from a device he pulled from his pocket, and robots began flying into the room. I released my choke from him and removed my inhibitor rings.

"CHAOS BLAST!"

All of the robots fell over, even Eggman took a hit from the blast.

He lied there grabbing his bleeding arm.

"Damn Shadow, you trying to kill me?" He squealed.

"I should." putting my foot on his neck and letting him gasp for air. His face went from red to a dark purple to a blue. Eggman passes out, and I release my foot. Deep down, I wanted to kill him. I should've killed him, but I didn't. I took the emerald he found in my absence and grabbed my rings, then returned to Rouge using Chaos Control.

When I landed in the penthouse, my energy depleted.

 _Shit, I didn't put my rings back on._

I rolled the emerald across the table to lie with the other three, then sat in the chair next to the couch. I hadn't taken any damage, but it sure felt like it. I was weak. Rouge was still asleep on the couch, and I felt my eyes growing weak. I needed to rest, but it was dangerous to without my rings. I tried to slide them on, but passed out before I could get one on…

 _Hey guys, I've been trying to upload a chapter a day, if not every other day. I had to take an extra day this time around because it was my birthday! I'm sure you all will understand, just a quick reminder, this story is MY take on Shadow's backstory, so I don't plan on using the cannon from space colony ark, since my story is pulling towards something else. Stay tuned to see what does happen though, Shadow still has a lot to figure out! The next chapter or two will be more chill, kinda like the beginning of this chapter. I'm still planning out how I want to end this story, so stay tuned and I'll try and get a chapter out tomorrow!_


	6. Chapter 6 - A New Life?

Chapter 6 - A New Life?

I woke up to a tugging feeling. Rouge was dragging me across the floor.

"Rouge… what the fuck are you doing." I glared up at her, wishing she'd stop dragging me.

"Well sleepy head, you're heavier than you look. I wanted to let you sleep in the bed since you were so tired… are you okay?" she said as she helped me up into the bed.

I laid back and stretched out, I noticed she had laid down on the end of the bed looking up at me.

"Yeah, I took care of Eggman… that's all."

She pulled out the emerald I got from Eggman. "Well Shad you sure did get me a wonderful gift."

I couldn't help but chuckle. "Sure, all yours, bat."

"So, now what?" she sat the emerald down and glanced back towards me.

"Well, I need to rest. Besides that, I really don't know. You can go home now though, Eggman won't be a problem anymore."

Her ears fell flat at my words. "Oh, well I was kinda…"

I glanced down at her. "Kinda what?"

She hesitated, then spoke. "Well. I kinda like being around you Shad. Unless you just wanna be alone, I kinda wanna stay…" she blushed a bit.

I sat in thought, part of me just wanted her gone, yet part wanted her around.

"Sure… you can stay. First, we gotta lay some ground rules." I finally said.

Her ears perked back up, and she was clearly surprised with my response. "I'm all ears Shady."

"Well, don't eat _my_ food. We've only been around each other for a few days, I'm not exactly the happiest roommate."

"Well Shady, we can share food ya know, it won't kill ya to eat dinner with me." she said with a flirtatious tone.

"You're gonna make me regret letting you stick around aren't you?" I rolled my eyes.

She laughed and climbed to lay next to me. "Shady, no rules, lets just go with the flow, okay?"

"Fine… we will try your way." I couldn't believe I was letting her get her way.

"Awe Shady, you're the best!" She gave me a big hug, then pulled away. "Now, get some rest."

With zero hesitation, I closed my eyes and slept. I didn't realize how drained I actually was until I woke up, I felt like a completely different person. I woke up and realized Rouge was cuddled up next to me. I slid out of bed and walked into the kitchen. I realized she put my rings back on.

 _Heh, thanks Rouge._

I grabbed a beer from the fridge and walked back into the bedroom. She had stretched out onto my side of the bed.

 _Guess I'm not going back to bed._

I studied her for a moment before walking to the balcony.

 _Damn, she's gorgeous._

I froze for a moment. Did I really just say that? I face-palmed and leaned over the edge.

The city was always busy, there was always something going on. My mind wondered for a bit, then thought back to what Rouge said.

 _What now?_

 _The blue hedgehog could be a problem, and so could that Knuckles guy. Maybe I'll do some freelance work, Maria did want me to help people after all._

I broke from my thoughts and went back inside, only to find Rouge sitting on the couch crying.

"Shit Rouge, you okay?" I walked over to her and sat beside her.

"Shady… I fucked up." tears continued to flow.

I didn't know what to say, or how to react. "Wanna talk about it?"

She glanced over at me after wiping the tears off her face. "Shad, GUN is gonna come after me because they think I went rogue. On top of that, when I threw my phone the other day… it was because Knuckles broke up with me. He called me a whore… saying I cheated on him with you just because you and me were working together." Her voice was breaking, she was so hurt… and I can't lie, even I was hurting for her.

I hugged her, I don't know why, but I felt she needed it. "Rouge, we didn't do anything. You're far from a whore… he's just crazy."

"Shad, he has a horrible temper. He might come for me, he might try and hurt me." she pulled me closer.

"Rouge, you got me, he can't touch you without getting through me."

She pulled away and met my eyes. "What about GUN? They're way more of a threat to us than Knuckles."

I almost didn't reply, I was lost in her eyes, and she obviously noticed that, because her cheeks were red as cherries. "Sorry… but yeah, don't worry about GUN. We will clear your name, and if not, then I'll make them regret coming for us."

She pulled me into a hug. "Shady, can I ask you something?"

"Yeah."

"Do you believe in destiny? Fate?"

I thought carefully before answering. "...Yes?"

"Okay, don't hate me. Ever since we met, you've been so positive. Everything I read about you… they made you out to be a monster. I feel like you came into my life for a reason Shady."

I was literally speechless. "Rouge…"

She pulled away and stood up. "No, I shouldn't have said anything. I'm sorry." She ran off and closed the bedroom door.

 _Shit…_

I needed to clear my head. I left the penthouse and went to the roof.

 _I can't catch a break.._

I was so confused… she was just so upset about Knuckles and GUN, yet she was so happy over _me?_ I felt bad, but I didn't know what she wanted. I decided to go back and try and talk to her. I climbed down the stairs and hear a gun cock. I glanced at the penthouse and saw a team of GUN agents getting ready to breach.

"CHAOS CONTROL!"

I teleported into the penthouse to find Rouge back on the couch.

"Rouge, bedroom, now!"

She froze, not knowing what to do.

An explosion shook the room.

"ON THE FUCKING GROUND BAT." one of the agents screamed. The explosion knocked me off my feet. Bullets began to fly.

I jumped up and took a few bullets.

 _Fuck._

"SHADY!" I heard Rouge scream.

I felt blood dripping off me, the anger I felt was otherworldly.

"You fools… you think lead will stop ME?" I stood up, eating a few more shots as I moved closer. Ever bullet that landed, I felt stronger, _angrier._ The red glow was back.

"You think a gun makes you powerful? I'll show you true power! CHAOS SPEAR!" I threw a blast at the group of agents.

They crawled away, but I grabbed one and pulled him back to me. I grabbed him by the throat and locked eyes with him.

"Go back to your boss and tell him that Rouge had nothing to do with this. If he has a problem, come see me." I choked harder, then threw him in the hall with his partners.

"Get the fuck out of here."

They ran off, my anger died down, pain rushed through my body.

 _Shit…_

I glanced down and saw the amount of blood I was losing. I glanced back at Rouge, she was pale as a ghost.

"Shad… we need to get you to a doctor." she slowly walked over towards me.

I felt myself fading. "No doctors, I protected you… you help me-"

I collapsed, I felt so weak, was I dying? The last thing I saw was Rouge sitting over me.

"Shadow! SHADOW!"

TO BE CONTINUED.


	7. Chapter 7 - Saving Rouge

Chapter 7 - Saving Rouge & Learning My Past

When I opened my eyes, I was blinded by light. I let my eyes adjust before I noticed I was in a hospital.

 _Rouge… I said no hospitals_

Then it hit me, where was she? I glanced around the room, no Rouge in sight.

The door to my room opened up and a nurse came in with a GUN agent following.

"He's awake, get the commander in here." the agent said into the radio.

After a moment of the nurse changing my bandages, a tall man walked in. He was clearly in charge, his name patch on his uniform read _Towers._

"Commander Towers, to what do I owe this pleasure?" I snarled sarcastically.

"Very funny hedgehog, you're in a lot of trouble you know." he said as he sat in a chair next to me.

"Trouble? What, because you decided it was a good idea to test me?" I said with a smirk.

"Test you? I'd say we won that battle, look at you, defending a rogue agent that you've known for what, a week now?" he chuckled shaking his head.

"What is it you want, and where is Rouge?"

"I was wondering if you were even gonna bring her up, it seems you've made quite the impression on her. She turned herself in on the circumstance that we save your life. Without a doubt, she sees good in you… but I know what you are, who created you."

"Maybe you didn't hear me clearly the first time. What do you want?" I growled.

He sat back in his chair and rubbed his chin. "Well, Rouge trusts you, and before she turned she was one of my best agents. She told me in her last report before going off the radar that she saw potential in you, and it could go either way, good or evil."

"Yeah, and attacking us like that is poking the devil inside me, and trust me, you _don't_ want me to let him out." I balled my fist, he hadn't even told me what he wanted yet and I already wanted to kill him.

"Your temper will kill you Shadow, I don't want anything with you. We have Rouge, and she'll tell us everything we need. After that, she'll spend the rest of her days rotting in a cell. Treason is a federal crime."

"Treason?! She didn't even betray you, she just helped me stop Eggman. What could she have possibly done?" I was gonna keep going, but he cut me off.

"Shadow, her mission was to capture you and bring you in. She went against that the moment she laid eyes on you." He stood up and walked out, leaving me in my thoughts.

 _She was meant to capture me? She really did break her rules for me. I gotta help her._

I ripped the tubes out of my arms, when I stood up I was wobbly at first, but after a moment of catching my balance, I continued into the hallway. The GUN agents saw me and tried to stop me… keyword tried. I made sure I hurt them just enough so they would have to book a room for themselves in the hospital. After I finally got out of that shithole, I decided to go to the penthouse to get one of the emeralds. When I arrived, there was no such luck. The agents probably came back and took the emeralds.

 _Why would Rouge turn herself in?_

I examined the damage, the massive pool of blood in the floor.

 _Shit, they really put a dent in me._

I couldn't help but chuckle, if I had made Rouge leave earlier that day, I probably would be dead. I did get somewhat lucky however, I found a note on the fridge, it was Rouges handwriting.

 _Dear Shady, if you're reading this, then you're not dead! I turned myself in to GUN so they could try and save you… I may never see you again, but if you're reading this then there's a lot you missed… Shady, you died in my arms. I thought I lost you. Listen, I need you to come find me if you're alive, even if you can't break me out, I need to see you. Please be okay, I miss you already. - your ally, Rouge the Bat._

 _Ally._

The word echoed through my head. It left chills on my arms.

 _She was taken by GUN, she has to be in the main base downtown. Guess I should pay them a visit._

I was in the bedroom grabbing some things when I heard someone else enter the room. I turned to find the Faker standing behind me.

"Well well, if it isn't my long lost brother, how've you been since the last time we saw each other?" he said with a big smile.

"I'm not in the mood for you Sonic. I'll deal with you later, I have priorities to deal with right now." I pushed him out of my way and walked passed him.

"Shadow stop!"

I turned and examined the blue hedgehog.

 _How could people confuse us for one another, we are nothing alike._

"I know what you did, saving Rouge like that. You're a good guy Shadow, why do you act so damn hard though?"

"Damn you Sonic, I'm not good! If one more person says that to me, I swear I'll kill them."

The hedgehog back off "Easy there buddy, maybe you can be the guy that is neutral."

I shook my head "You should stop talking before I rip your head off, I don't think you realize how annoying you actually are, we've met twice now and I wish we never meet again." I muttered angrily.

"Well Shadow, I hate to say it, but Earth is my planet to protect. If you do anything to harm the people here, you'll have to deal with me."

"Your arrogance will get you killed, Sonic." I said as I dashed off, heading towards the GUN base. Part of me expected him to follow, but he didn't. I did a lot of thinking on the way to find Rouge, I didn't even know what to say to her. Now wasn't the time to worry about that, I needed to focus on finding her first. When I arrived I was a bit surprised, the base was massive, it made Eggman's base look like a walk in the park.

 _Well, guess I should try to do this quietly._

I climbed up a guard tower and spindashed the guards up top. I then jumped from the tower to the roof, where I found a vent leading into a hallway. I scanned the hall before I dropped down, it was almost too quiet.

I dashed down the hall and found a door that read "Security"

I kicked it down and chaos speared the guards on the cameras before they could trigger the alarm. I found Rouge on the camera, she was in the basement, they were torturing her, probably for information on me.

 _I need to get to her._

A flash out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. A chaos emerald! I snatched it from the display case.

"Chaos Control now!"

I teleported into the room with the torture and Rouge.

I landed a roundhouse kick and knocked out the man, then ran directly to Rouge, who was chained up to the wall, bleeding from her eye and mouth.

"Jeez Rouge, you look like hell." I said as I broke her chains.

"Man Shady, that's no way to talk to a lady." she chuckled, then coughed up blood.

"Damn it, c'mon I'm getting you out of here. Chaos Control."

We flashed out and into Club Rouge, we landed in Rouge's apartment above the club. She fell to her knees, she was badly wounded.

"Rouge, I'm gonna take care of you. C'mon, let's get you cleaned up."

I carried her into the bathroom and sat her on the counter next to the sink. I couldn't find a cloth to help clean her with, so I took my shirt off and ran water over it, then helped clean the blood off her. After a moment, I wondered off and returned to find her still there, this time with a slight smirk.

"Gonna stitch me up Shady?" she said playfully, yet she was still hurting.

"Of course, now stop moving." I began stitching under her eye, even with a black eye, her emerald eyes were gorgeous. After I finished, I hugged her.

I must've surprised her, because she let out a loud gasp when I hugged her.

I immediately pulled back "Too much? Sorry."

She didn't respond like I thought she would, instead she pulled me onto her and laid a kiss on me. I was tingling from head to toe, I was frozen, my heart was beating out of my chest. I couldn't believe I was actually liking this. I blushed so hard, I began to sweat a little.

When she finally pulled away, she met my eyes. "Your eyes are so dreamy." she whispered to me.

"You should look at yours sometimes, I- I actually get lost in them, they're easily the most beautiful thing I've seen… well, next to you in general." I couldn't believe I was admitting all this. _Idiot._ Or was I?

She pulled me back in for another kiss, the first was more of an experiment, this was passion, I could feel her beaming as hard as I was. In that moment, I was the happiest I had been in over 50 years. When I broke the kiss, she said something that made my heart skip.

"I think I love you." She was hiding a smile, blushing as madly as I was.

I sat on the counter next to her, grabbing her hand. "I love you too Rouge."

The rest of the night was spent talking to each other and learning more of each other's past. I learned she had been with lots of guys before me, but never had anything super serious, while I had never kissed a girl before her, let alone be with one. I learned of her troubled past, she was way more alike me than I even thought imaginable. The night was filled with kissing, deep hugs, and cuddling on the couch. It had only been a week, but I knew then and there if I were ever meant to be with anybody, Rouge was definitely the girl for me.

After about a month of her letting me crash at her place, we both decided that we should get a bigger place, more secluded than Club Rouge. We bought a mansion using the money I stole off Eggman and the money Rouge had made from her thieving. I had to admit, she was the perfect partner. We got pretty serious pretty quick, we were having sex almost every night, and there was so much passion between us, I never got tired of her. I truly loved her. She showed me the documents about my past, a lot of it was so confusing, I was made to protect Maria, but also made to destroy the planet. I made it my own mission to not dwell on the past. My mission was to take care of Rouge, and boy was she full of surprises.

*3 months since the events of buying the house.*

I had just returned home from hitting a jewelry store, Rouge had trained me how to spot the best jewels to steal. I walked into the house and saw Rouge sitting on the couch with a huge smile, she ran over to me and met me with a huge hug.

"SHADY!"

I returned the embrace. "Yes babe?"

"I love you, you know that?"

I studied her for a moment. "Yeah, somethings up though, you must want something." I smirked at her.

She still had that huge grin. "Shady, I already got what I wanted. I got you! Now there's a bonus."

I raised my brow, "Go on."

She pulled out this stick looking thing, it had a plus on it.

I studied it and looked back at her. "I… don't get it?"

"Shady, I'm pregnant!"

My jaw must've hit the floor. I didn't think I could even get her pregnant, I wasn't made naturally after all. "Babe, that's great!"

I hugged her again, this time picking her up. I squeezed her, then sat her back down.

"Wanna make this day even better?" I said with a big smile, probably the biggest I'd ever had.

"I don't think that's possible, but try!" she exclaimed.

 _Oh, it's more than possible, I'm only gonna do the thing you've wanted me to do since we moved into this house._

I got down on my knee and pulled out a huge diamond. "Rouge, I wanna be with you forever. I never wanna have to wake up and you not be next to me anymore. I love you, babe, will you marry me?"

She was now pouring tears from her eyes. "Shady I- I- YES!"

We hugged and I left a soft kiss on her forehead, then she ran off screaming.

"I GOTTA CALL MY MOM AND TELL HER!"

I couldn't help but chuckle, life was perfect, perfect wife, perfect house, perfect family.

 _That's all guys! Sorry if this story jumped around a bit, I had some serious writers block last chapter. I didn't get to go into as much detail on Shadow's back story as i originally intended, but I had already read so many other stories and watched Sonic X, so I didn't know how I wanted to change it up! I stayed away from "killing" Shadow just to bring him back later, but other than that it was pretty straight forward. I still plan on making a sequel to my other story, feel free to check it out on my page! I might make a sequel to this too, but if I do it'll be more Shadrouge based than fighting/storytelling based. If you wanna see what Shadow and Rouge's marriage life is like with the kid, let me know and I'll happily write a story on that. I really love these two characters, and if you would like to see more feel free to let me know! Thanks to everyone who showed support on the story, it means a lot!_


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